Apple watch 3 doesn't power on with new battery

I have followed the guide to battery replacement to the letter, and the watch won’t power on with the new battery. It works regularly with the old battery. I tried with a total of 3 new batteries it will only power on with the original battery. At this point i think i can rule out the batteries being defective, am i missing something? Do i have to reset the watch before replacing the battery? I’m at my wits end